Motor Industry News

MyCarCheck.com comments on official “Crime in England and Wales” figures to March 2012 released today (19 July 2012)

No change in crime level is not good enough

Warning over police cuts, particularly to AVCIS

MyCarCheck.com - the UK’s No.1 vehicle provenance website - has saved millions of people from making an expensive used car mistake. As part of its mission to protect UK consumers it works closely with the police to reduce vehicle crime.

Figures issued today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that crime has remained at the same level as in the last three years, with ‘vehicle-related theft’ making up 13% of the total.

While most categories of police recorded crime fell in 2011/12 compared with 2010/11, there was a 2% increase in ‘other theft offences’, driven principally by rises in theft of unattended property.

Roger Powell, Divisional Head at CDL Vehicle Information Services Ltd (which owns MyCarCheck.com), commented: “While these figures are neither especially encouraging or disappointing, you have to remember that the way they are compiled can hide the true extent of the problem. For example, cars taken during house burglaries – by simply nicking the keys and driving away – will go on the burglary figures and not in the vehicle crime category, because that is the primary offence.

“If we are just treading water in terms of the crime level you have to question whether it is right to cut the police budget so savagely. In particular, the Association of Chief Police Officers’ Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (AVCIS) has done a lot of good work in our sector, but I understand it is under threat.

“Anyone treating themselves or a loved one to a new used car would do well to spend a few pounds at MyCarCheck.com to confirm whether it has ever been scrapped, stolen or written-off, has any outstanding finance, the last recorded mileage, the number of former owners and much more.

“We will continue to put out scam alerts on the latest tactics being employed by car thieves and will continue to work closely with the police, the International Association of Auto Theft Investigators (IAATI) and other interested parties to reduce vehicle crime.”

Over the last couple of years, MyCarCheck.com and MyTextCheck delivered around 4.5m consumer checks. Parent company CDL performs over 1m vehicle data checks a day for companies including AutoExpress, CompareTheMarket, Go-Compare, Moneysupermarket, Swiftcover and WhatCar?.

It uses up-to-the-minute information from the Police National Computer (PNC), the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), the Association of British Insurers (ABI) and major finance houses including Lloyds TSB.